Community Support Specialist (Seattle)

Catholic Community Services of Western Washington and the Archdiocesan Housing Authority (doing business as Catholic Housing Services and Coordinated Care Agency) are outreaches of the Catholic Church in Western Washington. Rooted in the Gospel message of love and hope, we recognize the sacredness and dignity of every human person. Our focus is on those individuals, children, families, and communities struggling with poverty and the effects of intolerance and racism.

Catholic Community Services of King County (CCSKC) is committed to providing care and compassionate services to poor and vulnerable King County residents. CCSKC provides a variety of services in the community including basic needs and housing stability services, transitional housing, behavioral health services, veteran’s services, legal services, immigration and refugees’ services, elderly and kinship services, youth tutoring services, workforce development services and pregnancy and parenting services. We respond to the needs in the community by building on the strengths of each person or family that comes to us for assistance. At CCSKC our mission is to build better lives, stronger families and healthier communities across Western Washington by meeting people where they are with respect and dignity. We work to improve client access to services, to advocate for services for those individuals and communities who are consistently underserved, and to include the voices and experience of those in the community who have lived experience with homelessness and poverty. Each year over 15,000 community members receive services from CCS King County.

If you are looking for meaningful work, make a tangible difference, and drive positive change, find out more at: https://ccsww.org/careers/

The Community Support Specialist is integral to the daily operations of the building and functioning of the agency. This position requires someone who can work with diverse populations and provide excellent customer service. This person is responsible for creating a welcoming environment, providing administrative support to programs, providing information and referral, and ensuring the safety of visitors, clients and staff.

(1) Seattle, On-site 100%

• →Maintain a Welcoming, Orderly, and Safe Environment: 
  • →Greet staff, clients, and guests with a welcoming smile and professional yet friendly demeanor.
  • →Help maintain a clean and organized lobby and public areas in and outside the building.
  • →Answer phones and direct calls to appropriate personnel.
  • →Check and send emails, including general delivery email box. 
  • →Maintain a clean and tidy workspace at all times.
  • →Provide crisis intervention to de-escalate emergent situations.
  • →Notify supervisor and building leadership of any situations that do not de-escalate quickly. 
  • →Answer emergency responder and fire alarm systems and take appropriate emergency steps as needed. 
  • →Respond to emergencies including medical, mental health and social crisis; contact appropriate staff and/or outside service providers.
  • →Maintain security of the building by ensuring visitors sign in and out of the building, enforcing lobby hours, and reporting any suspicious or unlawful acts to the supervising personnel when appropriate. 
  • →Enforce building and agency policies.
  • →Follow the procedure for proper opening and closing of the building.
• →Provide Administrative and Program Support
  • →Contribute to team effort by being flexible in work assignments; by furnishing support; by taking initiative; and by understanding how this position affects and compliments all CCS agencies and programs.
  • →Answer multi-line phone system and direct callers to appropriate staff or provide information on other appropriate community resources. 
  • →Maintain current resources and agency information.
  • →Monitor appointments, notify staff of visitors’ arrival, and provide appropriate instructions to visitors. 
  • →Process incoming and outgoing mail, accept and sign for deliveries, notify appropriate personnel if process server attempts to serve legal documents and maintain logs as required.  
  • →Performs variety of clerical duties, such as ordering and stocking office supplies, making copies, and delivering mail/packages.  
  • →Assist with building events and parties by providing set up support for meetings, training, and events being hosted by agency programs in the building.  
  • →Along with Operations Supervisor, make and confirm room reservations.
  • →Along with accounting, ensure all vendor and staff checks are distributed correctly by mail or pick up; and maintain logs as required.  
• →Additional Responsibilities 
  • →Attend trainings as required. 
  • →Respond appropriately to changes in the work setting. 
  • →Perform other related assignments as required. 
  • →Be familiar with CCS Policies & Procedures and the Front Desk Concierge Handbook.

This position requires the employee to work in an environment where there may be exposure to blood, bodily fluids, and other potentially infectious material. Other exposures could include cleaning supplies, bedbugs, chemicals involved in pest control, paint and other materials used in building maintenance, building temperature fluctuations, dust, noise, and odors. Working conditions include interruptions, crisis response, and regular interactions with individuals who are dealing with issues of chemical dependency and/or mental illness or are experiencing anger or frustration.

The requirements described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Able to hear telephone rings, phone conversation and face-to-face conversation, door bells and emergency alarms.
• Able to speak clearly in person and on the telephone.
• Able to hand write legibly.
• Vision that enables person to read normal size print and handwritten notes; and distance and peripheral vision than enables person to monitor living spaces and identify concerns that require staff response. 
• Able to sit for sustained periods of time. 
• Able to walk the entire building and ascend and descend stairs quickly to move from one floor to another in order to respond to emergency situations.
• Mobility/dexterity of hands/arms to enable keying into a unit or other locked area as well as using computers and other office equipment.
• Ability to prioritize multiple tasks, and to work independently and as a team member.
• Ability to regularly lift and carry up to 20 pounds and occasionally up to 40 pounds.
• Regularly able to perform duties as assigned.
• Able to make independent decisions and apply sound judgment in performing job duties.

• Customer service experience. 
• Ability to prioritize competing activities while maintaining a professional and calm attitude.
• Ability to respond and work with people who are vulnerable including people experiencing poverty or homelessness.
• Excellent communication, organization, and planning skills.
• Basic knowledge of Microsoft Office applications and web navigation.
• Demonstrates mature, responsible judgment in previous positions held.
• Demonstrates the necessary attitudes, knowledge and skills to deliver culturally competent services and work effectively in multi-cultural situations.
• Willingness to support and uphold the mission, beliefs and values of Catholic Community Services and Catholic Housing Services.
• Must have reliable form of communication and ability to respond in a timely fashion to shift requests.
• Support and contribute to a creative, collaborative and respectful environment that promotes teamwork.
• Criminal history background checks are required prior to employment.

Note to Internal Candidates: HR reviews internal compensation and determines any increase based on their experience and also agency internal equity factors. Please let us know if you need special accommodations to apply or interview for this position.